EVENTS

Fun times in the Thunderdome

Quick, everyone! To the Thunderdome! We’ve got a Christian creationist claiming at great length that atheism is false because NDEs, because the placebo effect can’t work in a naturalistic universe, because intelligent design, and because a whole bunch of quotes.

Be gentle, don’t spook her, and have fun tearing those arguments to shreds.

On a related note, this handling increases the likelihood for poe. Yes, I hate calling poe, too, but that is what it is. Bored people pepping up the scene get more space when the derailed ones get lost. Bored people love to be in the front page.

Because that’s what we do here. Where’s the fun in ignoring her? Where’s the education? Where’s the possibility of opening eyes, of helping others tune and strengthen their ability to argue such matters? What about all the people who read and don’t post? We’ve had people delurk to say that it was because of reading Pharyngula, and such arguments, that they deconverted. It has value.

Also, *I* learn tons every time there’s a good ‘get the creationist’ thread. I’m not a scientist, I’m an artist. For every single thread like that, I get a free education. I’ve been getting a free education for years here. It’s beyond fabulous.

Same here. I was wondering whether actress Lillian was known for a peculiar riding style.

I didn’t read all the responses, but the crew here did deal with the nonsense very well. Since most of the “arguments” were often-seen retreads, maybe there should be a locally-managed FAQ to which the poor souls could be directed. Or maybe there is and I’m just ignorant of it?

Hopefully, this being Thunderdome, I can drag this carcass in here and drop it for proper eviscerating, much as I’d like to see it singled out and stomped with high visibility. It seems the Atlantic got envious of the NYT in the wake of Mr. Chris’s post on rape being the fault of abstinence rules on military campuses. What in the name of sanity is going on with the big mags?

Because that’s what we do here. Where’s the fun in ignoring her? Where’s the education? Where’s the possibility of opening eyes, of helping others tune and strengthen their ability to argue such matters? What about all the people who read and don’t post? We’ve had people delurk to say that it was because of reading Pharyngula, and such arguments, that they deconverted. It has value.

It’s not just for people who might deconvert. It’s for asshat jerks like me who said something terribly stupid and insulting like I did yesterday. I came for the science at 1st too but stayed because I found you folks to be the most moral and socially conscious people I’ve ever run across. I want to learn and grow and be a better human being and being here is, I hope, helping me do that. I just want to say thank you for the free education and the occasional red ass you’ve given me. I’ve learned a lot. Thank you.